Marry by Relying on Favor: Chapter 142 - Shen Fu asked Wen Shuchen to Advance Him Ten Years’ Worth of Salary and Gave All the Money to That Woman

April 07, 2026 Oyen 0 Comments

Happy Reading~Chapter 142: Shen Fu asked Wen Shuchen to Advance Him Ten Years’ Worth of Salary and Gave All the Money to That Woman

 

In the darkness, there was the sound of fabric rubbing together and the crisp snap of a belt striking the bedpost. The emotions between the man and woman had been provoked to the extreme; each wanted nothing more than to tear the other apart to vent the pent-up frustration inside.

 

The next second—

 

Shen Fu was pushed off the bed. His shirt buttons had been undone to the last one, exposing his firm chest, faint red scratch marks standing out starkly against his cold, pale skin—evidence of how fiercely and recklessly the woman had clawed at him.

 

But Qu Bixin was no better off. His blood stained her lips—she had bitten him hard enough to break the skin.

 

“When it comes to discipline, you’re the one who grew up without parents to discipline you!”

 

Anger surged through her, and she didn’t care that she was touching on the one thing he hated most.

 

Her temples throbbed violently. It felt as though the man’s unrestrained force had nearly torn apart every bone in her body. It took her a long while to calm down. Lowering her lashes halfway, her face pale from blood loss, she said, “I admit defeat. Even if I cultivated myself for a thousand years, I still couldn’t beat you. And I can’t learn to treat feelings as a game like you.”

 

She had wanted to treat it like a game with Shen Fu too—like him, to cheat for money and affection.

 

But Qu Bixin couldn’t keep it up for more than a few days. Every time she was with him, memories surfaced uncontrollably. In her daze, she would even have the illusion that they were still together. Yet whenever Shen Tingji appeared, it was like a bucket of cold water thrown over her, jolting her awake.

 

In her life, only with Shen Fu had Qu Bixin ever tasted such defeat. She didn’t need a mirror to know her eyes were probably bloodshot. Meeting the man’s dark gaze bravely, she continued, “Isn’t it ridiculous? I’ve only just realized that during the four years after our divorce, my life without you was better than it is now.”

 

As long as she didn’t think about Shen Fu, everything in those four years had gone smoothly.

 

No one gave her cold looks. No one could hurt her.

 

In matters of love, Qu Bixin had fallen hard.

 

She didn’t cry. She simply didn’t want to be entangled with Shen Fu anymore. “Threaten me however you like.”

 

Shen Fu hadn’t said a word the entire time. Qu Bixin had already adopted a self-destructive stance, ready to let him do whatever he wanted.

 

In the dim master bedroom, no one turned on the light. The man sat on the cold floor like a statue for so long that Qu Bixin almost felt he intended to take root there. His stiff fingers sank into the quilt. Her own body temperature was just as cold.

 

In the latter half of the night, Qu Bixin couldn’t hold on any longer. Drowsily, she curled herself up in the quilt. After such a violent emotional upheaval, once she relaxed, every cell in her body screamed one word—exhausted.

 

She didn’t know when Shen Fu left; it must have been after she fell into a deep sleep.

 

At 4:30 in the morning, faint light began to seep into the sky, the air still carrying a chill.

 

Shen Fu drove nowhere in particular. He returned to Wen Shuchen’s private mansion.

 

He sat on the living room sofa, brewing tea himself. His shirt and suit trousers looked disheveled, and he made no attempt to hide it, waiting for the man upstairs to come down.

 

Wen Shuchen had changed into loungewear, a dark blue robe draped over his shoulders, clearly just called out of bed.

 

He wasn’t surprised to see Shen Fu like this. Before going to sleep, he had already learned that the two of them wouldn’t be staying the night here.

 

After brewing the tea, Shen Fu handed Wen Shuchen a cup.

 

The bones of his long fingers still bore wounds; he hadn’t even done the most basic medical treatment.

 

Wen Shuchen took the cup and said calmly, “You look terrible.”

 

Shen Fu no longer had the patience to savor tea. His brows were tightly furrowed, his eyes heavy with gloom. “She pretended to be dead tonight to trick me.”

 

Wen Shuchen smiled slightly upon hearing this. “It seems Miss Qu is taking revenge on you.”

 

No man could hear that the woman he loved had died and remain indifferent.

 

Seeing Shen Fu look at him, he continued, “Perhaps you could choose another way out to resolve the deadlock between you.”

 

Shen Fu lowered his eyes. After a long while, he asked, “What way out?”

 

Instead of answering immediately, Wen Shuchen asked, “Do you still love her?”

 

Shen Fu seemed to fall into thought, his wrist resting against his knee as he repeatedly turned the teacup in his hand.

 

He had never experienced any kind of love growing up. Shen Tingji’s parents’ care for him had never contained true familial affection. Before committing his crime, even his own brother had never considered the younger sibling left behind. So before he met Qu Bixin, it had been a long time since someone had appeared in his world who treated him wholeheartedly well.

 

At first, he had only used Qu Bixin—leveraging his own face to make her willingly build connections for him, helping him successfully break into high society. There hadn’t been even a shred of affection. From beginning to end, his goal was simply to borrow the Qu family’s power.

 

He succeeded. Qu Bixin was completely in his grasp. Over the years they spent together, slowly—even Shen Fu himself didn’t know when—his gaze began to linger on her.

 

But at that time, he still chose to give her up, joining forces with Wen Shuchen to bring down Wen Yue.

 

Shen Fu believed that aside from being a real husband to her, he had allowed Qu Bixin to ask for anything else she wanted.

 

It wasn’t that Qu Bixin was unattractive.

 

On the contrary, she was delicate and refined, with a coquettish and pleasing personality. She knew well how to disguise herself as innocent and pure before men.

 

He simply didn’t want to be entangled too deeply with her. Whether it was the Shen family’s grudges or the business war with the Wen family, none of it concerned her. He deliberately kept a distance between them, preparing for an eventual breakup.

 

Everything went according to Shen Fu’s plan, yet something was still missing.

 

It wasn’t until he found an excuse to accompany Wen Shuchen to Japan and saw Qu Bixin there that he understood.

 

Destroying a man is simple: first give him love without asking for anything in return. Once he falls deep without realizing it, then leave him. Without three to five years, he won’t recover.

 

Shen Fu, however, was a dark man who would stop at nothing for his career.

 

He didn’t regret it immediately. Once the arrow was loosed, there was no turning back. Even after realizing Qu Bixin had taken a place in his heart, he continued conspiring with Wen Shuchen, stringing her along lukewarmly for four years.

 

Now Wen Shuchen asked him—did he still love Qu Bixin?

 

After a long silence, Shen Fu felt an almost instinctive desire to keep Qu Bixin confined by his side.

 

As for whether he loved her—

 

To him, that was far less important than having her with him day and night.

 

Wen Shuchen read some of the gloom in his eyes. Tapping lightly on the porcelain cup with a long finger, he said, “There’s another way out—give up loving her. You and Miss Qu owe each other nothing anymore. Why cling to the past?”

 

“Would you give up loving He Qingchi?”

 

Almost instinctively rejecting Wen Shuchen’s words, Shen Fu shot back.

 

Wen Shuchen’s love was rational and measured. After a pause, he replied, “If one day she no longer needed my love, I would respect her and protect her.”

 

“So you’d let another man take your place? President Wen, how magnanimous.” Shen Fu’s tone was edged with sarcasm, born purely of resentment.

 

Wen Shuchen was broad-minded enough not to argue with a man defeated in love.

 

He finished his tea unhurriedly and set down the cup. “There’s no turning back in this world. He Qingchi will never ask me to stop loving her. But your Miss Qu will. Shen Fu, I suspect you’ve already annoyed her beyond endurance.”

 

Not a single word in that speech was pleasant to hear.

 

Shen Fu’s brows drew together heavily, while Wen Shuchen remained calm, discussing matters of the heart as if strategizing a kingdom. “The Qu family won’t allow their cherished daughter to remain nameless and entangled with you for a lifetime. Would you abandon Shen Tingji for her?”

 

Every question Wen Shuchen posed deepened the agitation in Shen Fu’s expression.

 

The sister he had raised with his own hands—blood-related or not—could never simply be cast aside.

 

Wen Shuchen knew this well and advised him to give up Qu Bixin.

 

“Qingchi has been having nightmares lately and can’t sleep without me by her side. Suit yourself.”

 

With that, he stood and went upstairs.

 

Now a man with a wife and child, President Wen had a stronger sense of time.

 

During the hour he spoke with Shen Fu, Wen Shuchen had calculated it carefully.

 

The vast living room grew incomparably quiet. Shen Fu still sat like a statue on the sofa, lowering his head to stare at the now-cold tea before him.

 

As for Shen Fu going to Wen Shuchen in the middle of the night to discuss matters of the heart—Qu Bixin knew nothing of it the next day.

 

After laying everything bare in a reckless outburst the previous night, she lost all enthusiasm for life for several days, lying motionless in her “princess castle.”

 

Shen Fu was dark and dirty at heart, with countless underhanded tactics.

 

She had prepared herself to be dealt with by him. Yet half a month passed, and there was no word from him.

 

When Qu Bixin realized this, she couldn’t help but speculate for a moment.

 

Had something she blurted out that night accidentally wounded his pride?

 

No—

 

Did Shen Fu even have such a thing as pride?

 

Uneasy, Qu Bixin continued staying in her villa. While scrolling through her social media feed, she saw a post from her “superficial” older brother, Qu Yanming.

 

After finally coaxing his wife back, he had bought jewelry and luxury goods and was now flaunting their affection online.

 

Qu Bixin’s eyes hurt from looking at it. Hypocritically, she left a comment: “Congratulations, dear brother, on winning sister-in-law back. As your little sister, I’m so happy I could cry.”

 

Qu Yanming ignored her entirely. Instead, Chen Mo replied, “Thank you, Xinxin.”

 

Seeing that Qu Yanming dared to ignore her, Qu Bixin replied to Chen Mo again: “As long as sister-in-law isn’t angry about what happened last time. Brother always says he married a gentle and magnanimous wife. I, as the younger sister, will look up to you as a role model from now on!”

 

There was silence on Chen Mo’s end for a long time—no reply came.

 

On the contrary, it was Qu Yanming who came out cursing: “Qu Bixin, you wretched girl! When I’m in charge someday, I’ll marry you off to some seventy- or eighty-year-old geezer as a replacement wife!”

 

Qu Bixin stared at the screen in disbelief. Had this dog lost his mind lately?

 

Qu Yanming had completely abandoned his usual flexible, calculating demeanor. In front of her, he sounded full of confidence.

 

Something felt off to Qu Bixin. She wondered if Shen Fu had made a move—using Qu Yanming to suppress her.

 

Holding her phone, she sat on the sofa thinking for a long time. Being straightforward by nature, she couldn’t hold back and called Qu Yanming. “Has Shen Fu said anything to you recently?”

 

Other than that, she couldn’t think of what could have inflated his arrogance.

 

Qu Yanming was still out. After cooing sweetly to Chen Mo beside him for a few moments, he deliberately asked, “My dear sister, what did you say? I didn’t hear you clearly just now.”

 

Qu Bixin endured it and repeated the question.

 

Qu Yanming sneered a few times. “Shen Fu? In front of me, he’s nothing.”

 

If Shen Fu hadn’t previously held evidence over him about keeping a mistress, Qu Yanming believed that as a born-and-bred rich heir, he and Shen Fu were never on the same level. Wasn’t Shen Fu just the Wen family’s watchdog, gaining a bit of status in the tycoon circle?

 

Qu Yanming refused to acknowledge Shen Fu’s success and even despised him for stepping on the Qu family to rise.

 

So now, his attitude toward Shen Fu was as vicious as possible.

 

Qu Bixin didn’t care to hear his evaluation of Shen Fu. She quickly sensed something.

 

Because Qu Yanming’s contempt for Shen Fu now extended to her as well.

 

These days, even capital punishment doesn’t implicate nine generations—let alone the fact that she and Shen Fu were already divorced.

 

Had Qu Yanming lost his mind?

 

Qu Bixin voiced the doubt.

 

There was a second of silence on his end before his laugh turned piercing. “My dear sister, haven’t you heard the news?”

 

“What news?”

 

She had been holed up for half a month. What rumor could there be in high society now?

 

Qu Yanming spoke mockingly over the phone. “The man at the tip of your heart has once again gone to show goodwill to another woman.”

 

Qu Bixin pressed her lips together. This time, she didn’t ask further—no need to humiliate herself.

 

But how could Qu Yanming miss such a good chance to mock her? Pretending to sigh, he said, “Three days ago, he publicly transferred all his assets to Shen Tingji—including the villa and luxury cars. He even advanced ten years of salary from Wen Shuchen at Wen Corporation. Tsk tsk tsk, all of it went to that woman.”

 

Which meant Shen Fu had become a penniless poor man—now even eating was a problem.

 

When Qu Yanming heard the news, he almost rolled off the bed laughing. “He’s really wholeheartedly devoted to Shen Tingji. Even if she never gives the money back, or gets fooled by some other man in the future, that fortune would be enough to be cheated for a lifetime.”

 

Qu Bixin remained silent for a long time, her mind blank.

 

From the other end of the phone, her sister-in-law Chen Mo’s voice sounded: “Isn’t it normal for a man to hand over the money he earns outside to his own woman when he gets home?”

 

Right—so in the eyes of outsiders, Shen Fu’s move had turned him into a henpecked husband.

 

In Qu Yanming’s view, as long as Shen Tingji controlled the money, Shen Fu was at most a pitiful man working for the company outside and working for his wife at home—no threat at all.

 

Qu Bixin didn’t want to keep listening to the couple’s conversation and hung up.

 

Lowering her head, her black hair hid her expression as her fingers gripped the phone tightly.

 

After sitting for a moment, she suddenly stood up, went to the walk-in closet, changed clothes, and went out.

 

……

Qu Bixin drove straight to He Qingchi’s house. When the nanny led her in, she happened to hear the male secretary named Song Chao speaking to He Qingchi in the living room.

 

“President Shen even borrowed money from me for breakfast today. He paid me back after work, though—Madam… he gave me ten coins.”

 

There was a hint of pity in Song Chao’s tone at how miserably Shen Fu was doing, and he used it as gossip to tell He Qingchi.

 

As expected of the so-called chief eunuch—very good at currying favor with the empress.

 

He Qingchi gently waved a folding fan, leaning half against the sofa armrest, and asked slowly, “Who did Shen Fu have lunch with?”

 

“President Wen. He mooched a meal off President Wen at noon. As for dinner, I don’t know—maybe he’s going hungry.” As Song Chao finished speaking, he caught sight of Qu Bixin entering and wisely fell silent.

 

“Madam, I’ll take my leave.”

 

He had only come to retrieve a folder Wen Shuchen had left in the study and shouldn’t linger.

 

After seeing Song Chao out, He Qingchi greeted Qu Bixin and let out a soft yawn. “I suppose you’re here to ask whether Shen Fu really advanced ten years of salary at Wen Corporation and gave it to Shen Tingji.”

 

Qu Bixin had indeed come to ask that. But after hearing Song Chao’s words, she changed her mind. “He handed all his assets over to Shen Tingji to manage. Is that mute woman trying to starve him?”

 

He Qingchi shifted her posture, resting her chin on one hand, smiling as she observed the fleeting anger that slipped out unintentionally.

 

But Qu Bixin quickly concealed it and bit her lip. “Serves him right!”

 

He Qingchi said, “Since Shen Fu gave all the money to Shen Tingji, it’s up to her how she spends it.”

 

Qu Bixin took a full minute to process that sentence.

 

Unfortunately, He Qingchi said no more—just enough to make the point.

 

“You’ve really picked up your husband’s style after spending so much time with Wen Shuchen.”

 

Qu Bixin couldn’t stand talking to people who spoke in riddles—never saying things clearly and making others guess.

 

He Qingchi smiled faintly. “I’m afraid that if I say too much, you’ll soften.”

 

Qu Bixin looked at her, unsure what expression to make.

 

She stayed at He Qingchi’s villa for less than half an hour before leaving. Restless and not knowing where to go, she drove around Jiang City—south and north—until night fell, then slowly drove home.

 

When she arrived at her gate, the streetlight cast a silent glow over the night. From a short distance away, she saw a familiar black figure standing outside the villa wall.

 

The lamplight revealed his position, outlining his profile—handsome as ever.

 

Qu Bixin felt an inexplicable tension and hesitated before getting out of the car.

 

Her high heels clicking against the ground broke the quiet.

 

The closer she got, the clearer Shen Fu’s refined, striking face became.

 

Half a month apart, he was still as good-looking as ever, dressed in a sharp, formal suit. His watch and cufflinks matched perfectly. If she hadn’t personally heard Wen Shuchen’s secretary say that Shen Fu had given him ten coins—

 

She would never have imagined that his pockets now contained nothing but breakfast change.

 

“What are you doing here?”

 

She decided to strike first, deliberately cold so as not to lose momentum.

 

Shen Fu’s voice was hoarse, likely from lack of rest. He pointed at the villa’s tightly shut door. “Can I have a glass of water?”

 

Qu Bixin glanced at him sideways. “If you’re getting sick, go see a doctor. Don’t die in front of my house.”

 

After saying that, she suddenly bit her tongue.

 

He had to borrow money from Song Chao just to buy breakfast, mooch lunch off Wen Shuchen—he probably didn’t even have money to see a doctor if he caught a cold.

 

Thinking of this, her tone grew even harsher. “Stand at the door. Don’t follow me in.”

 

She was kind at heart and easily soft-hearted—the typical sharp tongue but soft heart. A few minutes later, she not only brought Shen Fu a cup of warm water but also half a box of cold medicine.

 

Leftover from last month. She even added, “If I don’t give it to you, I’ll throw it away tomorrow anyway.”

 

Shen Fu swallowed two pills with the water without changing expression. His long fingers gripped the glass; the wounds on them had already healed quickly. He didn’t return the glass to her, only looked at her and said, “I came to tell you something.”

 

Something that made Qu Bixin instinctively want to run away.

 

It had been a long time since he had shown such gentleness and vulnerability—

----------